Agnieszka Podsiadlik in No Matter How Hard We Tried", photo by Kuba Dħbrowski

A performance by a leading Polish theater group TR Warszawa “No Matter How Hard We Tried” or "All Is Right Between Us", directed by Grzegorz Jarzyna will open on May 9 the 19th Istanbul Theater Festival, the biggest Theater Festival in Turkey.

In the play, Jarzyna stages a cutting-edge adaptation of Dorota Maslowska’s seemingly absurd drama. The text, consisting of subversively transformed quotes from pop-culture and national stereotypes, exposes, in a masterly way, the falsehood of the language of advertisements, glossy magazines and tabloids and confronts consumerist dreams with the reality of a grim life. It also mocks the shallowness of media and show-business, but the undertaking is only designed as a cover for the posing of a more serious question about “us” and national identity.

Jarzyna, one of the most innovative theater directors in Poland, will be presented with an honorary award during the event.

The festival will also feature two other plays directed by Jarzyna, who is TR Warszawa’s artistic director: Nosferatu and a DVD recording of the famous „2007: Macbeth”.

Jarzyna will also conduct master classes for Turkish actors.

The broad presentation of TR Warszawa’s artistic achievements is organized as part of the 2014 cultural program celebrating 600 years of diplomatic relations between Turkey and Poland.